“This story has become a family favourite in our house. Lily-May enjoys pointing out the different animals in the book and I expect a giggle or two every time I say bottom!”

BE A NAMED CHARACTER IN MY NEXT NOVEL

As part of CLIC Sargent’s yearly eBay Get in Character auction, I’ll be offering the highest bidder the chance to appear as a named character in a forthcoming novel along with 100 other best-selling authors. We’re all taking part to help raise vital funds for young people with cancer so please get bidding from 8pm 26 Feb! http://bit.ly/GetinCharacter

Stone underpants? Have you ever heard of anything more preposterous? Back in the Stone Age though, when young Pod lived there wasn’t an awful lot around to make bottom warmers from when your rear end felt decidedly chilly, so a pair of stone underpants is what he makes himself. Needless to say however, they’re not the best things for running around in, and as for swimming, well …

as do several others he tries. Is he destined to have a chilly rump for ever or is there something else he could try…

The very mention of underpants and bottoms frequently reduces young listeners to fits of giggles and I suspect this one will do just that. The whole scenario is totally crazy: beetles demolishing his wooden underpants overnight for instance; and what was wrong with using an animal skin, there are certainly wild beasts evident in some of the scenes; but this madcap romp requires total suspension of disbelief so, why worry. It’s assuredly something youngsters will raise anyhow and they’ll also more than likely ask about the material used for that football too, and perhaps question why Pod didn’t just try making leafy underpants But all this could lead very nicely into some investigative work on materials if you happen to work with young children. Alternatively you might just enjoy the ridiculous story as told by the aptly named Rebecca Lisle, and have a good giggle over the equally crazy pictorial rendition of same from Richard Wilson.

When you live in the Stone Age, it can get very cold… so cold, in fact, that you might need a good bottom warmer! Never one to sit around feeling the chill, young Pod decides to find himself some cosy underpants but where do you find them when everyone’s stony broke for warm materials? Young fiction writer Rebecca Lisle makes a triumph of going ‘bottom up’ in her first picture book which explores – in the most delightful way – the freezing but funny side of the Stone Age. Pod doesn’t like having a cold bottom so his dad very helpfully suggests he makes some. And Pod works really hard to solve the problem… but stone ones are too heavy, wooden ones are too splintery, shells too clattery and feathers too ticklish. It’s only when he sees the woolly mammoth’s warm coat that his ideas start to knit together something truly toasty warm… Richard Watson provides the wonderfully colourful and characterful illustrations for a charming picture book brimming with invention, imagination and Stone Age innovation! (Maverick, paperback, £6.99)NEW BOOK

STONE UNDERPANTS IS NOW OUT

If you want to know how to keep your bottom warm, read this book!

NEW EVENT

Fancy hearing how local authors write? Where they get their ideas from and how they get published? Then come along to Clifton Library on December 7 to meet six authors and hear them speak about their work. Plenty of time for questions and answers too.

LATEST NEWS

Wonderful afternoon today spent at Christ Church Primary School. This is my local primary school and where my three boys all went when they were little. Mr Tween was the headmaster in those days – he made a fabulous Elvis in the Parent/Teacher Christmas Entertainment – anyone remember that? The school is undergoing massive renovations and being increased in size but we managed to cram 70 year 5/6 into one of the big classrooms. I interacted as best I could with the very high tech interactive board; it responded before I even touched it, in fact I now think it was reading my mind…

In the same way that the principle behind local author Rebecca Lisle’s writing is “What would I most like to read about?”, the principle behind her talk to Years 3, 4 and 5 was “What would I want an author to talk about?”. The principle worked as she held the attention of the children on a hot, airless afternoon at the end of a very busy term.

Thanks to her remarkable foresight in keeping so much memorabilia from her childhood and early life, Rebecca was able to demonstrate to the children how she had developed from a seven-year-old dreamer (with an imaginary mother called Saucer who followed the family car in a little trailer) to the acclaimed author of 26 books.

She shared letters, secrets, pictures and her childhood diary highlighting the inevitable fallings-out between little girls at school. She shared stories of her own school days (an unhappy experience, particularly when being taught Maths by the sadistic Mr Penny) and photographs of her childhood pets, including the puppy whose teeth fell out.

The children saw one of her first attempts at a novel, Two on a Treasure Trail, and at a comic strip, The Battles of Ballerina Betty, as well as her first book in French (extracts of which were read by bilingual Isaac and Zac to great acclaim from their peers).

The children were given a wonderful insight into her sources of inspiration and they could have gone on asking questions all afternoon. Rebecca left the children with an important message: for any piece of work to become as a good as it can be, it is necessary to reflect on first attempts and keep refining with changes, corrections and improvements. Even then, she is never completely satisfied and feels her books could always be that little bit better.

Peter Huckle – Head of Junior School

Thank you Mr Huckle and Ms Shepherd for making the afternoon such a success. Bristol Grammar School is a great place to visit – probably an even better place to be a part of.

PATRON OF READING:

And the winners are: Elsa Wilkie, Alex Warren, Aimee Miller, Polly Payne, Louisa (7MB). Louisa, I’ve just finished The Fault in Our Stars which you read over Easter. It’s a bit grim, isn’t it? But A GREAT READ. SOB. Sob.

Patron of Reading – Just in the process of reading through all the entries for the Easter Reading competition at Clifton Pre. The winners will be drawn at random. I have some good prizes: signed copies of SAWBONES by Catherine Johnson, MUNCLE TROGG by Janet Foxley, CRACKS by Caroline Green and MISSION TELEMARK by Amanda Mitchison. You’ll love them.

School Visit: I shall be speaking to year 3 at Bristol Grammar Schoolin June 2014.

Book week 2014 fast approaches. I will be spending two days in Clifton College, a morning in a primary school in Somerset and a morning at Clifton High School. Lots of reading will be happening.

In June I will be visiting Bristol Grammar School to talk to the year 4s.

Patron of Reading: As my role of Patron, yesterday I gave out the prizes for the Spooky Story Competition at Clifton College. There were some great stories, really scary and original. Well done everyone.

VISIT TO CLIFTON COLLEGE – I will be visiting on 23rd April. It’s always great to visit this school because the children are so delightful and so enthusiastic, plus I don’t have far to travel!

RADIO BRISTOL AFTERNOON SHOW Tuesday 26th. I’ll be there, listen out or be square!

March 4 – Prior Park Preparatory School – I shall be visiting the school, talking to all the children about writing and doing some fun workshops with them. Looking forward to it.

World Book Day March 7 2013 – I will be opening the new library at Cadbury Heath Primary School in Bristol.

My talks are dynamic and fun and cover all aspects of writing (and sometimes illustrating) a book. I show children how I start with an idea and develop that into a whole story. I have lots of funny pictures and drawings to share; even the first book I wrote when I was 10. A talk can be for around 60 or 70 students or less.

Workshops – usually with a maximum of about 25 students – are tailored to suit the group. They are lots of fun: developing a character, plotting, sense of place, fattening sentences, etc. I have years of teaching experience, as in a previous existence I taught Biology at secondary level. I also have an MA (Distinction) in creative writing from Bath Spa University.

I live in Bristol and visit schools all round the South West.

Recent feedback:

Heather Blake, Deputy Head, St Mary’s Catholic Primary School, Marnhull, Dorset:
“Thank you so much for your entertaining and interesting presentation to our children last week. They were buzzing with interest in your books. We were very interested in seeing your diary and the beautiful pictures you had painted as part of the process of book making. It was the start of a good Book week. Thanks again.”

Anne Miller, Headmistress, Hollyfields School, Gillingham, Dorset:
“Many thanks for your visit on Tuesday. The children thoroughly enjoyed it; one child told his mother it was the best day ever! Some of them now want to be authors and there is a waiting list to read your books.”

Clifton High School, Bristol:
“Thank you very much for coming to see us at Clifton High School. Not only did you inspire the children but the staffroom became the latest branch of your fan club! Hope you will come again soon.” Alison Dobson, Librarian

“That was a great ‘Meet the Author’ session you presented to our junior classes last week! The children just loved seeing the first book you wrote as a child and you planted the seed in many of them to write themselves. The idea of buying a beautiful book to write in has already inspired some budding authors.”

As a teacher I loved your advice about starting the story from your own experiences and letting it evolve from there……exaggerate and embellish…. wonderful advice.

“The children were rapt, listening. They loved the book you wrote in French and illustrated. They were absorbed in the stories behind the books and how your characters came about.”

“You gave them more in that one session than I could have done over many months. Plus we are all so involved, infact gripped, in your ‘Copper’ novel. It really means so much more now they have met you and been able to ask relevant questions about the plot! Infact, in our Assembly play this week, one child who is being bullied by an older sibling uses the device of talking to her bear so the audience knows what she is feeling- her own idea. Many thanks and I look forward to reading aloud many more Rebecca Lisle stories to future classes!” Fran Barnard

Paragon School, Bath:
“The children were spellbound. It was a fantastic talk and the children had a marvellous day.”

Sunninghill Prep School, Dorchester:
“The children were thrilled to meet you and were talking about it long after you had gone.” “The children had already read many of her books in the run up to her visit. There were squeals of excitement as they realised that here was the author of the book they had so enjoyed… She had storyboards and sketch books with drawings that showed the development of the first drawings through to publication.” “The parents have all been talking about the ‘Rebecca Lisle’ visit and how their children loved it!”

Norton Hill School, Midsommer Norton:
“Rebecca spoke about how she got into writing and showed the pupils diaries she had written as a keen young writer and how her writing had improved to her present-day success. The tasks got the children really interested. The students got a lot out of the session.”

Brimsham Green School, Yate:
“The day went really well – very positive response from the pupils and teachers at the school. That you for putting so much into it all.”

Bristol Grammar School:
“Thank you for yesterday. A real treat for that group and for me!”

The day began with a talk/presentation to all the Y5/6s. The children and teachers listened enthralled as she described how she started writing as a nine year-old (with very bad spelling by her own admission!) and developed into the writer she is today. During her presentation she introduced us to most of her books, and gave us many interesting writing tips. Two writing workshops for Y6 classes followed and a lively question and answer session with some Y5’s in the Library at lunchtime. At 3:15pm many children enthusiastically collected their signed books (Rebecca ran out of copies of “Amethyst”!)

Since her visit, many teachers have reported that they have had some fantastic discussions about story writing, and I have had a run on Rebecca’s books in the library! All in all, a very successful day!”

One Responseso far.

I am the School Librarian at Clifton High School in Bristol, an all through school for children aged 3-18. I am currently organising our annual Junior Book Week (for ages 3-11) and would love to invite you to visit our pupils. Our Book Week is the week beginning March 3rd, which also covers World Book Day. I appreciate this is a busy time for authors but if you do have any availability for this week, please could you email me with further details of your fees?

If this isn’t a good time, please do keep us in mind when organising future tours.